3.7.1 Outline the main function(s) of the following software utilities: data compressors, virus software, file managers, defragmentation software.
Data Compression:
Data Compression refers to the act of encoding information using fewer bits than the original representation would use. Compression has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are fairly obvious, it reduces space usage in hard disks and reduces consumption in terms of time when referring to transmission bandwidth. However, the biggest disadvantage is that compressed data must be decompressed to be used. This can cause a problem as expensive hardware might be required to, for example, when decompressing a video being watched online, such as in youtube, the video is needed to be decompressed fast enough to be viewed whilst it is being decompressed. Fully decompressing the video before viewing it might be inconvenient as storage space is needed to store the video. Ziv Lempel compression is a type of compression used to substitute repeated words by a code, as to occupy less space. The phrase 'to be or not to be' could be compressed to 'to be or not 1 5', as the compressed data is between characters 1 and 5.
Virus Software:
Most virus softwares (Anti-virus) undertake five main tasks, these being Protection, Cleanup, Alerts, Updates and Further Protection. The protection task provides real-time protection, therefore preventing unwanted processes from accessing your computer while you use the internet. The cleanup task allows for scheduled scans to take place where viruses and other unwanted programs are searched for and dealt with appropriately. The alerts provide, as the name suggests, alerts the user when malware is attempting to access the computer, or when something in your computer is trying to access something on the internet. Updates are often provided regularly and keep the computer's protection up to date without you having to manually update it. Some anti-viruses provide further protection such as a quarantine option for infected files when the file cannot be deleted. This prevents the file from infecting other files in the computer.
File Managers:
A file manager provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI) with that allows to perform a series of operations to take place, such as copy, delete, format, find, create folder/directory, archive, print, back-up, rename and restore.
Defragmentation Software:
When files are stored into a hard disk they are initially stored sequentially. One file is stored after the next, as to create an easily accessible file system. However, when someone edits or deletes a file, a space of unused memory is left. These 'spaces' are then used by the next set of data that needs to be stored. These are edited, spaces are created and even more files occupy the 'blank
spaces'. This causes what is known as a 'Fragmented Disk', where it is incredibly long to access a file because it's data is spread out across multiple platters, a bit like solving a puzzle every time you want to open a file. Disk Defragmentation Software maps and rewrites data that is spread out across hard disk platters, as to store them in sequential order. This way accessing files is much faster.
3.7.2 Discuss the need for each of the utilities in 3.7.1
Data Compression
Compression has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are fairly obvious, it reduces space usage in hard disks and reduces consumption in terms of time when referring to transmission bandwidth. However, the biggest disadvantage is that compressed data must be decompressed to be used. This can cause a problem as expensive hardware might be required to, for example, when decompressing a video being watched online, such as in youtube, the video is needed to be decompressed fast enough to be viewed whilst it is being decompressed. Fully decompressing the video before viewing it might be inconvenient as storage space is needed to store the video.
Virus Software:
This is a really simple question to answer – you need to use antivirus software to protect your own computer, and to prevent your computer from being used to pass on infections to other machines without your knowledge. If you use the internet and you don’t take precautions, you’re going to get infected. And you’ll infect others, including those you care about most like your friends, family, and business contacts because their information is in your email address book and other files on your computer.
If you don’t care about infecting others, let’s look at the economic argument for a moment. You have a computer that must have cost at least $600, and perhaps as much as $4,000. On top of that you’ll have a monitor for which you paid between $250 and $1000, and you’re running software costing at least $500 dollars. If you have business or specialist packages installed then I’m guessing you may have invested $5000 in software alone. You will probably pay upwards of 25 dollars a month for your internet connection. And if you store personal data on your PC, it is probably worth more than money to you.
A file manager is software which provides a user interface to assist in the organisation of files. It helps users with their daily work in managing their files on a hard drive or other storage device. With terabyte hard disks becoming prevalent, file managers represent an essential tool in managing file systems.
Every file manager provides basic operations such as to create, open, view, edit, search, rename, move copy, and delete files. However, file managers typically come supplied with sophisticated functionality including network connectivity, directory synchronizing, archive handling, advanced searching, shortcuts, file/folder comparisons, checksums, plugins, and more, making them an incredibly powerful tool.
Defragmentation Software:
Defragmentation software is needed if you want your access speed to increase.
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3.7.1 Outline the main function(s) of the following software utilities: data compressors, virus software, file managers, defragmentation software.
Data Compression:
Data Compression refers to the act of encoding information using fewer bits than the original representation would use. Compression has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are fairly obvious, it reduces space usage in hard disks and reduces consumption in terms of time when referring to transmission bandwidth. However, the biggest disadvantage is that compressed data must be decompressed to be used. This can cause a problem as expensive hardware might be required to, for example, when decompressing a video being watched online, such as in youtube, the video is needed to be decompressed fast enough to be viewed whilst it is being decompressed. Fully decompressing the video before viewing it might be inconvenient as storage space is needed to store the video. Ziv Lempel compression is a type of compression used to substitute repeated words by a code, as to occupy less space. The phrase 'to be or not to be' could be compressed to 'to be or not 1 5', as the compressed data is between characters 1 and 5.Virus Software:
File Managers:
A file manager provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI) with that allows to perform a series of operations to take place, such as copy, delete, format, find, create folder/directory, archive, print, back-up, rename and restore.Defragmentation Software:
When files are stored into a hard disk they are initially stored sequentially. One file is stored after the next, as to create an easily accessible file system. However, when someone edits or deletes a file, a space of unused memory is left. These 'spaces' are then used by the next set of data that needs to be stored. These are edited, spaces are created and even more files occupy the 'blank
spaces'. This causes what is known as a 'Fragmented Disk', where it is incredibly long to access a file because it's data is spread out across multiple platters, a bit like solving a puzzle every time you want to open a file. Disk Defragmentation Software maps and rewrites data that is spread out across hard disk platters, as to store them in sequential order. This way accessing files is much faster.3.7.2 Discuss the need for each of the utilities in 3.7.1
Data Compression
Compression has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are fairly obvious, it reduces space usage in hard disks and reduces consumption in terms of time when referring to transmission bandwidth. However, the biggest disadvantage is that compressed data must be decompressed to be used. This can cause a problem as expensive hardware might be required to, for example, when decompressing a video being watched online, such as in youtube, the video is needed to be decompressed fast enough to be viewed whilst it is being decompressed. Fully decompressing the video before viewing it might be inconvenient as storage space is needed to store the video.Virus Software:
This is a really simple question to answer – you need to use antivirus software to protect your own computer, and to prevent your computer from being used to pass on infections to other machines without your knowledge. If you use the internet and you don’t take precautions, you’re going to get infected. And you’ll infect others, including those you care about most like your friends, family, and business contacts because their information is in your email address book and other files on your computer.If you don’t care about infecting others, let’s look at the economic argument for a moment. You have a computer that must have cost at least $600, and perhaps as much as $4,000. On top of that you’ll have a monitor for which you paid between $250 and $1000, and you’re running software costing at least $500 dollars. If you have business or specialist packages installed then I’m guessing you may have invested $5000 in software alone. You will probably pay upwards of 25 dollars a month for your internet connection. And if you store personal data on your PC, it is probably worth more than money to you.
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http://www.articlecity.com/articles/computers_and_internet/article_586.shtml
File Managers:
A file manager is software which provides a user interface to assist in the organisation of files. It helps users with their daily work in managing their files on a hard drive or other storage device. With terabyte hard disks becoming prevalent, file managers represent an essential tool in managing file systems.
Every file manager provides basic operations such as to create, open, view, edit, search, rename, move copy, and delete files. However, file managers typically come supplied with sophisticated functionality including network connectivity, directory synchronizing, archive handling, advanced searching, shortcuts, file/folder comparisons, checksums, plugins, and more, making them an incredibly powerful tool.
Defragmentation Software:
Defragmentation software is needed if you want your access speed to increase.
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